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THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON, 
CATHOLIC  JURIST 


By 

J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 
Assistant  Professor  of  History 
in 

Gannon  College 


Reprinted  from 
THE  CATHOLIC  HISTORICAL  REVIEW 
Vol.  XXX,  No.  4,  January,  1945 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON, 
CATHOLIC  JURIST 


By 

J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 

Assistant  Professor  of  History 
in 

Gannon  College 


Reprinted  from 

THE  CATHOLIC  HISTORICAL  REVIEW 
Vol.  XXX,  No.  4,  January,  1945 


D 

igitized  by 

the  Internet 

Archive 

in  2013 

http://archive.org/details/domesticlifeofwischa 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON, 
CATHOLIC  JURIST 


WHILE  the  most  important  facts  in  the  lives  of  the  men  of  the 
law  can  be  gleaned  from  their  legal  decisions  and  political 
actions,  the  student  may  not  overlook  their  domestic  affairs, 
for  very  often  explanations  for  their  actions  are  only  to  be  found  in 
their  private  lives.  So  it  was  in  the  case  of  William  Gaston,  North 
Carolina  legislator  and  jurist,  an  exemplary  Catholic  layman,  friend 
of  bishops  and  priests,  kindly  husband  and  father,  and  southern 
gentleman. 

The  training  of  a  pious  mother  and  the  teaching  and  example  of  the 
Jesuit  fathers  at  Georgetown  College  laid  the  basis  of  his  remarkable 
career.  William  J.  Gaston  was  born  in  New  Bern,  North  Carolina  on 
September  19,  1778,  and  became  one  of  the  most  famous  lawyers  and 
jurists  that  state  ever  produced.1  His  father,  Alexander,  was  active 
in  the  patriot  cause  before  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution  and  was 
killed  by  the  Tories  in  the  midst  of  the  war. 

Dr.  Alexander  Gaston  came  to  New  Bern  sometime  before  May  1, 
1764.2  He  was  born  in  Ballymena,  County  Antrim,  Ireland;  the 
Gastons  trace  their  family  back  to  Jean  Gaston,  a  French  Huguenot, 
who  fled  to  Scotland  around  1640.  Jean's  three  sons  then  fled  from 
Scotland  to  Ireland  some  twenty-five  years  later  and  established  the 
family  there.    Alexander  came  to  America  as  a  result  of  ill  health. 

1  For  a  sketch  of  his  life  cf.  J.  H.  Schauinger,  "William  Gaston,  Southern 
Statesman,"  North  Carolina  Historical  Revieiv  (April,  1941).  Cf.  also  J.  H. 
Schauinger:  "A  Great  Southern  Catholic,"  United  States  Catholic  Historical 
Society  Records  and  Studies  (1941),  for  an  estimate  of  him  by  his  contempo- 
raries; and  id.,  "William  Gaston  and  the  Supreme  Court  of  North  Carolina," 
North  Carolina  Historical  Review  (April,  1944),  for  his  legal  career. 

2  Craven  County  (N.  C.)  Deed  Book,  II,  May,  1764.  MS.  This  is  the  first 
record  of  Dr.  Gaston's  presence  in  North  Carolina.  On  May  1  he  bought,  at  the 
sheriff's  sale,  100  acres  of  land  on  the  east  side  of  Pamlico  Road,  it  being  part  of 
Juniper  Swamp,  and  for  this  he  paid  two  pounds.  He  must  have  been  here  some 
time  before  that  date. 

394 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


395 


He  had  received  his  medical  degree  from  the  University  of  Edinburgh ; 
then  joining  the  British  navy  as  a  physician  he  was  with  the  fleet  in 
1762  at  the  capture  of  Havana,  but  resigned  his  commission  because  of 
a  fever  caught  during  the  campaign. 

In  the  ten  years  following  his  arrival  at  New  Bern  he  became  one 
of  the  most  respected  citizens  of  the  town.  During  this  time  he  ac- 
quired considerable  land,  including  a  plantation  along  Bryce's  Creek, 
which  ran  into  the  Trent  River  about  two  miles  from  town.  For  his 
land  outside  of  town  he  paid  not  quite  a  thousand  pounds.3  He  also 
owned  a  lot  in  town.  With  the  coming  of  the  Revolution  he  found  his 
sympathies  lay  with  his  adopted  country  and  soon  became  one  of  the 
leading  patriots  of  the  community.  When  the  Committee  of  Safety 
of  New  Bern  was  formed  he  was  a  member,  and  on  March  4,  1775,  he 
together  with  Richard  Cogdell,  Abner  Nash,  and  others  signed  a 
memorial  to  remind  the  citizens  of  the  rules  and  regulations  of  Con- 
gress, pleading  with  them  to  remain  firm  in  the  cause  of  liberty  and 
to  implore  assistance  from  God  for  the  success  of  Congress.4  This 
was  a  dangerous  thing  to  do,  and  the  loyal  governor,  Josiah  Martin, 
sent  the  names  of  these  signers  to  the  home  government.5  Sometime 
in  May,  although  his  fortunes  were  now  definitely  linked  with  the 
rebels,  the  Irish  physician  so  captivated  Margaret  Sharpe,  a  young 
English  woman  who  was  making  a  temporary  visit  to  the  colonies, 
that  she  married  him.6 

Margaret  Sharpe  was  born  in  Cumberland  County,  England,  of  a 
devout  Catholic  family,  and  was  sent  to  a  convent  in  Calais,  France 

3  In  May,  1764,  Alexander  bought  the  above-mentioned  land,  and  also  a  half 
acre  on  Craven  Street  in  the  town  for  seventy  pounds  the  following  December. 
In  1767  he  bought  two  hundred  acres  for  £275.  In  July,  1768,  166  for  £108;  in 
August  for  £150  over  300  acres.  In  1771  he  bought  460  acres.  The  next  year 
he  purchased  520  acres  on  Bryce's  Creek.  In  February,  1775,  he  bought  a  planta- 
tion for  £300  as  well  as  a  lot  in  town,  but  sold  both  the  following  month.  For  the 
former  he  got  £310.  Cf.  Deed  Books  of  Craven  County,  II,  437;  XII-XIII,  189; 
XV,  296;  XV,  333  and  337;  XIX,  70;  XX,  102;  XXI,  238,  251. 

4  North  Carolina  Colonial  Records,  IX,  1144. 

5  "State  Papers  on  File  in  the  Public  Rolls  of  England  concerning  Colonial 
North  Carolina,"  p.  186.  MS,  John  H.  Wheeler  Papers,  Library  of  Congress. 

6  There  is  no  record  of  this  marriage,  nor  has  it  been  possible  to  determine  the 
age  of  Alexander  then.  Evidently  Margaret  told  her  son,  William,  that  the 
wedding  took  place  sometime  in  May,  1775. 


396 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


for  her  education.  She  came  to  America  to  visit  her  two  brothers, 
Joseph  and  Girarde,  who  were  merchants  in  New  Bern.  At  the  time 
of  her  marriage  Margaret  was  around  twenty  years  old,  having  been 
born  in  1755.  The  three  childen  of  Alexander  and  Margaret  were  all 
born  during  the  war ;  the  first,  a  son,  died  as  an  infant,  William  Joseph 
was  born  in  1778,  and  Jane  two  years  later. 

In  the  days  following  his  marriage  the  physician  was  one  of  the  most 
active  of  the  rebels  in  the  district.  In  September  he  was  appointed  to 
the  Provincial  Council  for  New  Bern.  The  colonial  capital  had  been 
at  New  Bern,  but  Governor  Martin  had  fled  from  there  in  June.  The 
Committee  of  Safety  was  kept  busy  from  the  very  beginning  of  the 
next  year ;  Cogdell,  John  Easton,  William  Thompson,  William  Tisdale, 
Richard  Ellis,  William  Brown,  and  Dr.  Gaston  served  on  this  com- 
mittee. In  March,  1777,  Gaston  was  appointed  by  the  council  as 
justice  for  Craven  County,  and  in  May  he  and  James  Davis  were 
made  judges  for  the  District  of  New  Bern.7  By  his  activities  Gaston 
had  attracted  the  notice  and  aroused  the  ire  of  the  Tories  of  that 
section,  so  he  soon  received  their  attention.  In  1781  the  British, 
based  in  Wilmington,  made  widespread  raids  through  the  state.  When 
reports  of  their  movement  reached  the  physician  he  retired  to  his 
plantation,  but  as  the  alarm  seemed  groundless  he  returned  home. 
On  a  Sunday,  August  19,  as  he  was  eating  breakfast  a  neighbor  rushed 
in  to  report  that  the  Redcoats  were  at  hand.  While  Mrs.  Gaston 
remained  with  the  babies,  their  father  hurried  to  the  wharf  to  row 
across  the  river  to  his  plantation.  A  band  of  Tories,  led  by  the  no- 
torious Captain  John  Cox,  came  ahead  of  the  regular  troops  and  com- 
pletely surprised  the  town.  They  galloped  directly  to  the  wharf  and 
found  the  rebel  patriot  still  within  range.  That  night  three-year  old 
William  and  one-year  old  Jane  went  to  bed  orphans.8  Mrs.  Gaston's 
two  brothers  had  already  died  sometime  before  this. 

7  North  Carolina  Colonial  Records,  XI,  710;  XII,  109. 

8  In  the  Gaston  MSS  a  document  by  William  Gaston  tells  this  story.  In  it  he 
states  that  it  was  told  him  many  times  by  his  weeping  mother.  It  was  said  that 
she  hurried  to  the  wharf  when  she  heard  the  soldiers  shooting.  They  were  shooting 
wild,  until  Captain  Cox  took  deliberate  aim,  and  despite  the  pleas  of  Margaret, 
shot  him  dead.  The  New  Bern  Spectator  of  Dec.  19,  1834,  takes  to  task  the 
National  Portrait  Gallery  of  Distinguished  Americans  (1834)  for  stating  in  the 
sketch  of  William  Gaston  that  his  father  had  left  Mrs.  Gaston  and  children  on 
the  wharf. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


397 


Margaret  Gaston  never  ceased  to  mourn  her  husband,  wearing  black 
until  her  death  in  1811.  At  the  time  of  her  husband's  death  she  was 
a  woman  of  twenty-six  years,  with  calm,  grey  eyes,  a  beautiful  face, 
and  stately  carriage.  She  devoted  herself  to  the  care  and  education  of 
her  children,  and  became  a  nurse  to  the  indigent  sailors  landing  at 
New  Bern.9 

Mrs.  Gaston  was  determined  that  her  son  should  have  a  good  edu- 
cation. Therefore,  when  she  learned  that  a  Catholic  college  would  be 
opened  in  Maryland,  at  Georgetown,  on  the  Potomac  River,  she  im- 
mediately decided  to  send  him  there.  So,  in  the  spring  of  1791,  at 
the  age  of  twelve,  William  Gaston  left  New  Bern  for  college  in  the 
company  of  John  Devereux,  an  old  friend  of  the  family.  As  the  college 
was  not  yet  opened  when  they  arrived,  Devereux  took  the  boy  to  Phila- 
delphia, leaving  him  in  charge  of  a  Dominican  priest,  Francis  Fleming. 
Gaston  remained  here  about  five  months,  from  June  to  November,  and 
lodged  with  a  Mrs.  Brewer  at  74  Lumber  Street.  The  youngster 
wrote  his  mother  soon  after  his  arrival  that  he  had  been  "taking  a  full 
view"  of  the  city,  which  he  thought  very  handsome.  To  his  eyes  the 
streets  were  so  similar  that  he  felt  it  must  be  most  difficult  to  tell  them 
apart.  Naturally  knowing  nothing  of  the  city's  rich  pleasures,  he  con- 
fessed that  "notwithstanding  the  beauty  and  variety  that  is  in  this  place 
I  still  wish  myself  at  home  on  account  of  the  heat  here ;  what  the  reason 
is  I  don't  know,  for  even  walking  in  the  place  back  of  the  town  where 
there  are  but  few  houses  it  is  very  hot."10  Perhaps  he  was  homesick. 
Philadelphia  at  this  time  was  the  seat  of  the  national  government; 
Congress  and  President  Washington  were  there. 

Father  Fleming  had  come  to  Philadelphia  in  December,  1789,  and 
was  made  pastor  of  St.  Mary's  Church.  At  one  time  he  had  been 
rector  of  the  Irish  College  at  Lisbon,  and  was  an  eloquent  preacher 
and  student.  His  sermon  of  March  17,  1790,  printed  by  Matthew 
Carey,  was  the  first  on  St.  Patrick  published  in  the  United  States. 

9  Elizabeth  F.  Ellet,  The  Women  of  the  American  Revolution,  II,  159-165. 
Susan  Gaston  Donaldson  gave  the  author  material  for  her  sketch.  However, 
Mrs.  Gaston  could  not  have  died  in  1809,  as  Ellet  states,  for  she  made  her  will  in 
March,  1810. 

10  Gaston  to  his  mother,  June  14,  1791,  Gaston  MSS.  Unless  otherwise  stated 
reference  to  the  Gaston  MSS  means  the  collection  at  the  Library  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  North  Carolina,  Chapel  Hill 


398 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


Bishop  John  Carroll  made  him  vicar  general  of  the  northern  district 
of  the  Diocese  of  Baltimore.  When  the  yellow  fever  plague  of  1793 
struck  Philadelphia,  those  who  had  the  means  fled,  but  Fleming  re- 
mained to  care  for  the  sick  and  dying,  and  as  a  result  himself  took  the 
fever  from  which  he  died  in  October.11 

Under  Father  Fleming's  direction  Gaston  began  to  prepare  for 
college.  He  got  up  in  the  morning  at  six  o'clock  to  attend  Mass.  After 
breakfast  he  wrote  French  exercises  until  eight  o'clock,  and  then  went 
to  an  English  school  until  noon.  While  waiting  for  his  lunch  he  read 
Latin  and  Greek,  and  afterwards  returned  to  his  English  class  until 
five  o'clock.  The  next  hour  he  spent  in  Father  Fleming's  library, 
reading  whatever  the  priest  thought  proper.  Three  times  a  week  he 
went  to  one  of  the  many  French  schools  that  dotted  Philadelphia, 
where  he  remained  for  an  hour.12  By  September  he  was  able  to  tell 
his  mother  that  he  had  learned  "so  much  of  the  French  language  as 
to  be  able  to  hold  a  conversation  tolerably  well."13  Finally,  on  Novem- 
ber 2,  1791,  after  a  three-day  journey  by  stage  coach,  the  priest 
turned  his  young  charge  over  to  the  president  of  Georgetown,14  the 
Reverend  Robert  Plunkett.  However,  as  the  school  was  still  incom- 
pleted, William  lived  with  the  president  for  the  weeks  before  it  opened 
and  thus  became  its  first  student.  Father  Plunkett  soon  became  very 
fond  of  the  youth,  attracted  by  his  personality,  manners,  and  mind. 
Plunkett  wrote  Mrs.  Gaston  several  times  to  tell  her  how  "Billy"  was 
progressing  and  that  he  had  gained  the  affection  and  esteem  of  all ;  he 
was  the  first  of  many  eminent  figures  to  prophesy  that  North  Carolina 
would  one  day  have  a  native  bishop  in  the  person  of  Gaston.15  The 
other  professors  were  Father  Francis  Neale,  Samuel  Browne,  and  John 
de  Mondesir;  Neale  became  the  seventh  president  of  Georgetown  in 
1810.  Among  the  early  students  were  Enoch  and  Benedict  Fen  wick  ; 
the  latter  was  to  attain  fame  as  the  second  Bishop  of  Boston. 

11  Francis  Neale  to  Gaston,  Dec.  11,  1793,  Gaston  MSS. 

12  Gaston  to  his  mother,  Aug.  25,  1791,  Gaston  MSS. 

13  Same  to  same,  Sept.  16,  1791,  Gaston  MSS. 

14  Fleming  to  Mrs.  Gaston,  Nov.  7,  1791,  Gaston  MSS. 

15  Robert  Plunkett  to  Mrs.  Gaston,  June  23,  1792.  Also  Sept,  19,  Dec.  [?]  1792; 
Jan.  21,  Feb.  12,  March  6,  March  30,  April  24,  1793.  The  fond  mother  kept  all 
these  letters  about  her  son,  as  well  as  many  letters  he  wrote  her  about  school  life 
from  Georgetown  and  Princeton. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


399 


The  few  students  were  soon  joined  by  others  until  by  June,  1792, 
there  were  forty.  Gaston  was  the  only  one  to  board  and  room  within 
the  college  as  the  rest  of  the  boys  lived  in  the  town.  The  routine  in 
general  was  that  practiced  in  most  colleges  of  the  time.  The  boys  arose 
at  six  o'clock  in  the  morning  and  went  to  bed  at  half -past  eight  o'clock. 
Their  courses  consisted  of  English,  Latin,  Greek,  French,  arithmetic, 
elocution,  geography  and  "use  of  the  globe."  Every  day  three  and  a 
half  hours  were  set  aside  for  recreation.  In  September,  1792,  Gaston 
reported  that  the  college  had  received  so  many  new  boys  that  the 
building  had  to  be  enlarged.  In  December  of  that  year  he  caught  a 
severe  cold,  and  as  he  was  unable  to  rid  himself  of  it  his  mother  feared 
consumption,  and  so  she  decided  to  bring  him  back  to  North  Carolina. 
On  April  25,  1793,  after  an  absence  of  almost  two  years,  Gaston  left 
Georgetown  for  home. 

He  spent  the  next  year  in  the  New  Bern  Academy,  which  was  con- 
ducted by  the  Reverend  Thomas  Irving,  a  Presbyterian  and  graduate 
of  Princeton.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  mid-term  examinations  an 
oration  was  "delivered  by  Mr.  Gaston  on  the  blessings  of  American 
Independence."16  When  the  academy  closed  in  the  middle  of  July 
for  the  vacation  it  was  Gaston  who  gave  the  valedictory,  which  the 
Gazette  stated  was  delivered  with  singular  eloquence,  on  the  imposing 
theme  of  "The  Rising  Glory  of  America."17 

The  next  fall,  through  the  persuasion  of  Irving,  Mrs.  Gaston  deter- 
mined to  send  her  son  to  Princeton.  Father  Neale  was  opposed  to  this, 
so  when  young  Will  arrived  in  Philadelphia  in  September,  1794,  the 
question  was  still  undecided.  Bishop  John  Carroll  was  brought  into 
the  discussion,  and  he  finally  gave  his  approval  to  the  choice  of  Prince- 
ton. The  myth  that  all  southerners  are  gentlemen  and  that  most 
northerners  are  "Yankee  traders"  was  prevalent  even  at  this  early 
time.  After  Gaston  arrived  at  Princeton  and  met  several  of  his  class- 
mates he  was  so  surprised  to  find  this  was  not  entirely  true  that  he 
exclaimed  to  his  mother,  "I  never  was  more  agreeably  disappointed  in 
my  expectations.  For  compliance,  civility,  and  good  breeding  I've 
scarcely  seen  their  equals.    Their  behavior,  in  short,  quite  charmed 

16  New  Bern  Gazette,  Jan.  4,  1794. 

17  New  Bern  Gazette,  July  12,  1794. 


400 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


me."  Before  enrolling  he  came  back  to  Philadelphia  to  spend  the 
month  before  the  college  opened. 

During  Gaston's  second  sojourn  in  Philadelphia  he  naturally  took 
the  time  to  seek  out  friends  made  during  his  former  stay.  Among 
those  was  Rembrandt  Peale,  son  of  the  famous  artist,  Charles  Willson 
Peale.  Rembrandt  later  became  almost  as  well  known  as  his  father ; 
at  seventeen  he  painted  a  portrait  of  President  Washington  in  three 
sittings.18  Some  two  years  before,  Gaston  had  informed  his  mother 
that  Rembrandt,  then  fifteen,  had  been  converted  to  Catholicism,  but 
that  his  father  was  bitterly  opposed  to  this.  Concerning  this,  Gaston 
said,  "What  he  suffers  from  his  parents  and  relations  on  that  point 
you  cannot  conceive.  On  Friday  and  Saturday  they  would  have 
nothing  but  meat  ....  and  he  would  be  obliged  to  have  no  dinner  or 
make  out  with  a  piece  of  bread."19  Some  time  after  that  Rembrandt 
had  been  able  to  convince  his  father  that  he  was  in  earnest,  and  Mr. 
Peale  then  allowed  his  boy  to  enter  a  seminary  to  study  for  the  priest- 
hood. However,  this  did  not  last  long  and  during  this  brief  visit  in 
Philadelphia  before  continuing  on  to  Princeton,  Gaston  found  out  that 
Peale  had  left  the  seminary  "because  of  an  affection  for  a  girl."  Al- 
though he  remained  a  Catholic  his  friends  feared  for  his  faith  because 
of  her.20  Their  fears  were  later  realized  as  Peale  did  not  remain  a 
Catholic.  At  this  time  the  girls  were  also  beginning  to  attract  the 
youth  from  North  Carolina. 

During  Gaston's  time  the  curriculum  at  Princeton  included  geogra- 
phy, logic,  mathematics,  natural  and  moral  philosophy,  astronomy, 
belles  lettres,  and  chemistry.  He  was  admitted  to  the  junior  class 
which  included  several  other  North  Carolinians.  As  has  always  been 
the  case  with  college  students  he  had  to  write  home  several  times  for 
funds.  Even  before  his  arrival  he  wrote  that  $210  was  not  enough 
in  those  times,  but  that  a  little  more  would  do  as  he  behaved  with  a 
frugality  he  hoped  no  one  could  doubt.  Here,  as  at  Georgetown, 
students  were  required  to  pay  semi-annually  in  advance,  and  Gaston 
was  forced  to  borrow  to  make  up  the  required  $59.  Board  cost 
$2.50  a  week,  while  each  student  was  expected  to  cut  his  own  wood.21 

18  Congress  later  purchased  this  portrait. 

19  Gaston  to  his  mother,  Feb.  6,  1792,  Gaston  MSS. 

20  Same  to  same,  Nov.  24,  1794,  Gaston  MSS. 

21  John  Maclean,  History  of  the  College  of  New  Jersey,  p.  25. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON  401 

Noah  Webster  was  one  of  the  tutors,  and  there  were  about  eighty- 
seven  students.  In  1796,  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  Gaston  was  graduated 
at  the  head  of  his  class.  Among  the  graduates  of  this  class  were  Philip 
Pendleton  of  Virginia,  John  Berrien  of  Georgia,  and  Frederick  Beas- 
ley  of  Maryland.  Beasley  remained  the  life-long  friend  of  Gaston. 
The  latter,  after  his  graduation,  went  to  Philadelphia  to  receive  the 
sacraments  of  his  Church,  and  then  turned  his  steps  toward  home. 
Concerning  this  period  of  his  life  a  friend  later  remarked  that  "he  re- 
membered only  one  frolic  in  which  Gaston  was  forced  to  retire  to  the 
cornfield."  While  in  Philadelphia,  after  his  graduation,  James  Peale 
painted  his  portrait.  This  exquisite  miniature  of  young  Gaston  shows 
him  attired  in  a  waistcoat  and  a  white,  flowing  cravat.  The  oval- 
shaped  face  with  its  delicately  tinted  cheeks,  deep-set  blue  eyes  (with 
eye-brows  perfectly  pointed  as  to  seem  almost  molded  or  plucked), 
finely-chiseled  nose,  round  deep  chin  and  a  firm,  beautifully  expressive 
mouth,  all  were  framed  against  a  mass  of  wavy,  chestnut,  powdered 
hair  falling  about  and  below  the  ears. 

On  his  return  he  found  the  family  in  a  new  home,  for  which  his 
mother  had  expended  seven  hundred  pounds.  The  old  one  had  been 
destroyed  during  a  conflagration  which  had  swept  New  Bern,  and 
but  for  the  quick  actions  of  Devereux  its  occupants  might  have  perished 
with  it.  Other  buildings  had  to  be  rebuilt,  and  the  town  obtained  a 
"new,  neat,  elegant  court  house."  There  were,  at  this  time,  between 
seven  hundred  and  a  thousand  houses. 

It  was  now  necessary  to  determine  what  profession  Gaston  should 
follow,  and  it  did  not  take  long  to  decide  that  his  talents  best  fitted 
him  for  the  bar.  At  that  time  there  were  no  law  schools ;  students  of  the 
law  studied  in  the  offices  of  practicing  lawyers.  Gaston  was  fortunate 
in  this  respect,  for  New  Bern  was  the  home  of  a  brilliant  lawyer,  Fran- 
cois Xavier  Martin.22  For  two  years  the  youth  studied  under  the 
future  chief  justice  of  Louisiana,  and  then  on  September  22,  1798, 

22  Cf.  William  W.  Howes,  "Francois  X.  Martin,"  Great  American  Lawyers,  II, 
411-452.  Martin  had  been  a  printer,  and  published  several  legal  works  besides 
compiling  a  history  of  North  Carolina.  He  was  an  ardent  Democrat  and  warm 
supporter  of  Thomas  Jefferson.  In  1809  he  was  appointed  by  President  Madison 
a  federal  judge  of  the  Mississippi  Territory.  He  became  the  first  attorney- 
general  of  Louisiana,  then  a  judge  of  the  state  supreme  court,  and  finally  chief 
justice.  He  practically  created  the  jurisprudence  of  this  state,  bringing  order 
where  chaos  had  before  existed. 


402 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


was  admitted  to  the  bar.23  He  took  the  oath  of  allegiance  before  the 
clerk  of  the  county  court  of  Carteret,  paid  a  tax  of  £10,  and  stepped 
forth  from  the  building  a  lawyer,  just  three  days  after  his  twentieth 
birthday. 

A  short  time  before  this  event  his  sister,  Jane,  had  also  begun  her 
own  career  as  the  wife  of  John  Louis  Taylor,  a  lawyer  of  Fayette- 
ville.24  That  same  year  the  general  assembly  elected  him  a  judge  of 
the  superior  court.  With  his  elevation  to  the  bench  he  became  too 
busy  to  handle  his  extensive  practice,  and  so  he  turned  part  of  it  over 
to  his  young  brother-in-law. 

The  next  five  years  were  busy  ones  for  the  young  lawyer  as  he 
began  to  build  up  his  reputation  as  a  legislator  and  counsel.  However, 
he  also  found  time  for  social  affairs  as  well  as  romance.  A  former 
classmate,  writing  him  in  1800  for  a  recommendation,  asked  if  he  had 
"any  new  flame  or  was  with  an  old  one."  Nancy  Guion,  the  sister  of 
his  old  friend  and  room-mate  at  Princeton,  tried  to  arouse  his  interest, 
but  Gaston  had  his  eyes  fixed  elsewhere.  While  visiting  his  sister  at 
Fayetteville  he  met  Susan  Hay,  daughter  of  John  Hay,  a  lawyer,  and 
niece  of  William  Barry  Grove,  one  of  the  most  prominent  Federalists 
in  North  Carolina.  Susan  was  the  belle  of  the  town,  beautiful,  lively, 
and  the  life  of  the  younger  set.  Walter  Troy,  a  student  of  Dr.  William 
Hooper,  exclaimed  over  her  to  his  teacher,  "Oh,  Sir !  she  is  enough 
to  melt  the  frigidity  of  a  Stoic  and  excite  rapture  in  the  breast  of  a 
hermit."25 

Gaston  visited  his  sister  often  that  summer  of  1803  and  found  Susan 
waiting  there  for  him.   At  the  end  of  the  summer  he  wrote  his  sister 

23  Licence,  State  of  North  Carolina,  Gaston  MSS. 

24  Cf.  A.  R.  Newsome,  "John  Louis  Taylor,"  Dictionary  of  American  Biography, 
XVIII,  334.  No  biography  of  Taylor  exists.  Jane  was  seventeen  when  she 
married  Taylor.  She  was  his  second  wife;  his  first,  Julia  Rowan,  by  whom  he  had 
a  daughter,  had  died.  In  1811  Taylor  was  elected  by  the  judges  of  the  superior 
courts  as  their  presiding  justice.  In  1819,  when  the  supreme  court  was  formed, 
mostly  through  the  efforts  of  William  Gaston,  Taylor  became  the  first  chief 
justice  of  North  Carolina.  He  was  Federalist  in  politics  and  seemed  to  have  in- 
fluenced William  in  this  respect  more  than  Martin  did,  as  Gaston  also  became  a 
Federalist. 

25  "Letter  from  Hamilton  C.  Jones  the  Elder"  (Feb.  2,  1819),  North  Carolina 
University  Magazine,  XXIII  (April,  1893).  Jones  quotes  from  Dr.  Wm.  Hooper's 
Fifty  Years  Since. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


403 


that  this  period  had  been  the  most  pleasant  of  his  life,  and  that  he  felt 
Susan  was  better  calculated  to  render  him  more  happy  than  anyone 
he  had  ever  met.  "Residing  under  the  same  roof  with  my  dear  Susan 
and  enjoying  her  confidence  I  have  had  an  opportunity  of  a  more 
intimate  acquaintance  of  her  excellencies.  To  say  that  I  love  her  more 
though  would  not  be  true,"  he  concluded.  Susan  was  sixteen  and  Wil- 
liam was  twenty-five  when  they  were  married  at  Fayetteville  on  Sep- 
tember 4,  1803.26 

The  marriage  seems  to  have  taken  place  in  the  bride's  home.  The 
wedding  over,  the  younger  people  rolled  back  the  rugs  in  the  large 
parlor  and  they  danced  and  flirted  and  talked  throughout  the  night, 
while  the  older  and  more  sedate  played  cards  and  gossiped  in  other 
rooms.  Outside  the  windows  could  be  heard  the  soft  murmur,  the 
songs,  and  an  occasional  burst  of  laughter  from  the  Negroes  as  they 
joined  in  the  celebration.  The  couple  took  a  short  trip,  and  then 
returned  to  New  Bern.  Gaston  began  to  gather  the  necessary  ma- 
terial for  the  important  Granville  case  and  even  to  take  in  law  stu- 
dents. The  world  looked  bright  for  the  young  couple,  but  their  happi- 
ness was  of  short  duration,  for  on  April  20,  1804,  just  eight  months 
and  sixteen  days  after  the  wedding,  the  young  bride  died. 

Although  the  blow  was  hard,  Gaston  was  young,  and  the  companion- 
ship of  young  ladies  was  not  unwelcome.  Hence  it  was  not  surprising 
that  a  year  and  a  half  later  the  widower  again  sought  the  altar.  His 
bride  was  a  distant  cousin,  Hannah  McClure,  the  daughter  of  General 
William  McClure.  Their  friends,  noticing  the  deepening  intimacy, 
laughed  at  her  for  calling  him  "cousin."  She  asked  Gaston  what 
should  be  substituted  for  this,  saying  "what  will  be  pleasing  that  your 
Hannah  would  call  you?"  They  were  married  in  New  Bern  on  Octo- 
ber 6,  1805,  by  Father  Simon  Felix  Gallagher.  The  bride  was  nine- 
teen, the  groom  twenty-seven. 

This  marriage  was  the  occasion  of  an  amusing  mix-up,  although  it 
must  not  have  seemed  too  entertaining  to  Gaston.  There  being  no 
resident  priest  in  North  Carolina  to  solemnize  the  marriage  he  wrote 
his  old  friend,  Bishop  Carroll,  for  guidance.  The  bishop  directed  him 
to  Father  Gallagher  of  Charleston,  South  Carolina.   Then  the  bishop 

26  Raleigh  Register,  Sept.  19,  1803. 


404 


J.  HERMAN  SCH AUINGER 


found  that  another  priest  was  traveling  through  North  Carolina,  and 
this  man  wrote  Gaston  that  he  would  be  glad  to  serve  him.  Gaston 
then  found  he  had  on  his  hands  two  priests  for  the  occasion,  so  he  had 
to  write  both,  requesting  the  attendance  of  the  one  who  could  with 
less  inconvenience  leave  Charleston  early  in  October.27 

Hannah  McClure  was  described  by  one  of  her  contemporaries  as  a 
"woman  of  superior  understanding  whose  disposition  was  frank  and 
generous,  with  manners  bland  and  unaffected ;  although  possessing  an 
open  and  engaging  countenance  her  features  singlely  could  not  be 
called  beautiful."  Red  hair,  big  brown  eyes,  well-shaped  nose,  gener- 
ous lips,  a  firm  chin  made  up  these  features.  This  same  person  as- 
serted that  Hannah's  secret  charm  and  cordial  expression  of  truth 
and  sincerity  with  an  added  genial  grace  endeared  her  to  all  in  New 
Bern.   Her  chief  virtue  seemed  to  be  a  practice  of  extensive  charity.28 

By  this  time  Gaston  was  well  established.  In  the  April  following 
his  marriage  he  bought  his  wife  a  piano,  paying  $310  for  it.  A  few 
days  before  this  he  had  purchased  two  lots  on  Craven  Street  in  New 
Bern,  paying  ^912  for  one  and  ^250  for  the  other.29  In  1817  he  sold 
the  latter  lot  which  was  at  Front  and  Craven  Streets,  for  $2325. 30 
Between  this  time  and  the  outbreak  of  the  War  of  1812  he  bought  320 
acres  on  Bryce's  Creek  for  $1000,  two  lots  in  town  and  some  other  lots 
outside  it  for  about  $5000.31 

Meanwhile  there  was  also  a  growth  in  his  family.  The  first  child,  a 
son,  was  born  to  the  couple  January  19,  1807,  and  named  Alexander. 
A  daughter,  Susan,  was  born  June  4,  1808,  and  Hannah  arrived  March 
18,  1811. 

Gaston  was  elected  to  the  Thirteenth  Congress,  which  met  in  May, 
1813,  in  special  session  to  consider  the  problems  raised  by  the  recent 
declaration  of  war  against  Great  Britain.  Before  its  adjournment  on 
August  2,  1813,  urgent  necessity  called  him  home.  The  British  had 
carried  the  war  into  North  Carolina,  and  on  July  13  rumor  reached 

27  Gaston  to  Bishop  John.  Carroll,  Oct.  25,  1805,  Baltimore  Cathedral  Ar- 
chives, 3y2.    Hereafter  these  archives  will  be  referred  to  as:  BCA. 

28  Raleigh  Register,  July  13,  1813. 

29  Deed  Book  of  Craven  County,  XXXVI,  795  and  803. 
302Ibid.,  XXXIX,  749. 

31  Ibid.,  XXXVII,  919;  XXXVIII,  217,  284,  285,  300,  301,  389. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


405 


New  Bern  that  the  British  were  once  more  marching  on  the  town. 
Hannah  was  visiting  neighbors,  the  Dunns,  when  the  news  reached 
her,  "communicated  in  an  improper  manner,"  and  she  immediately 
hurried  home.  She  became  more  and  more  nervous  and  around 
eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  was  seized  with  violent  convulsions.  The 
family  physician,  Dr.  Custis,  was  called,  but  the  convulsions  could 
not  be  stopped.  At  three  o'clock  in  the  morning  she  died,  taking  with 
her  the  unborn  child  whose  advent  she  had  so  dreaded.  John  Donnell 
took  the  three  children  to  Gaston's  sister  in  Raleigh.32  That  same  day 
Gaston  was  speaking  in  Congress  on  the  necessity  of  having  a  fixed  date 
to  hear  the  report  on  foreign  relations.  Before  the  end  of  the  month 
Gaston  was  in  Raleigh,  from  which  he  soon  returned  sadly  to  his  own 
home,  there  to  remain  until  the  next  session  of  Congress  that  winter. 
The  British  had  actually  never  reached  New  Bern. 

Gaston  returned  to  Washington  for  the  winter  session  of  1813-1814, 
and  then  again  for  the  special  session  which  came  to  an  end  on  March 
3,  1815.  He  was  re-elected  to  the  Fourteenth  Congress,  which  opened 
its  proceedings  on  December  5,  1815.  During  this  session  society 
began  to  have  more  attractions  for  the  handsome  widower.  With  less 
to  do  in  Crongress,  he  had  more  time  for  parties,  balls,  and  boat  rides. 
Friends  began  to  notice  his  preference  for  the  company  of  one  of  the 
daughters  of  Dr.  Charles  Worthington. 

It  is  to  your  goodness,  Miss  Worthington,  I  throw  myself  for  forgive- 
ness in  presuming  thus  to  address  you.  In  vain  have  I  sought  a  fit 
occasion  for  personally  communicating  to  you  the  holy  secret  of  my 
soul.  In  society  only  have  I  the  happiness  to  meet  you  and  then  I  dare 
not  even  by  a  look  intimate  the  emotion  ....  which  it  is  a  torture  to 
suppress.  ...  I  flatter  myself  this  declaration  will  not  be  a  shock  .  .  .  . 
others  have  perceived  it  ...  .  can  it  have  escaped  you  ....  that  I  hang 
with  delight  upon  your  conversation  ....  I  thought  it  a  feeling  that 
could  no  longer  animate  a  heart  which  has  been  accustomed  to  glow 
with  the  warmest  affection,  but  which  calamity  has  rendered  torpid. 
If  hope  is  illusory  ....  a  simple  blank  return  .  .  .  ,33 

Gaston  had  enclosed  in  Eliza's  letter  one  to  her  father,  Dr.  Charles 
Worthington,  asking  permission  to  speak  to  his  daughter.    The  next 

32  Peter  Custis  to  Gaston,  July  16,  1813;  John  Donnell  to  same,  July  13,  1813, 
Gaston  MSS. 

33  Gaston  to  Eliza  Ann  Worthington,  April  4,  1816,  Gaston  MSS. 


406 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


day  he  received  an  answer  from  the  physician  telling  him  to  call,  and 
that  he  would  be  received  "in  a  manner  you  are  entitled  to  from  the 
preference  by  which  you  have  distinguished  my  daughter."  Within  the 
month  the  question  was  settled  and  he  became  a  daily  visitor  at  the 
Worthington  home  in  Georgetown. 

A  few  days  after  his  avowal  to  Eliza  the  first  session  of  the  Four- 
teenth Congress  adjourned.  Gaston  remained  in  Washington  for 
about  three  weeks,  then  left  for  Raleigh  where  he  had  several  cases 
to  handle.  Hannah  had  been  dead  for  three  years,  and  during  this  time 
the  children  lived  with  his  sister  in  Raleigh.  The  thirty-eight  year  old 
widower  started  a  steady  stream  of  letters  back  to  his  fiancee.  These 
tell  of  his  activity  of  the  moment  and  of  past  events.  The  first  was 
written  from  Richmond.  After  telling  her  about  the  society  there  and 
a  few  minor  incidents  in  which  he  had  a  part,  he  said,  "There  are  a 
thousand  things  I'd  like  to  tell  you  if  I  were  near  you,  but  cannot  in 
writing  speak  to  you  ....  as  when  seated  in  the  corner  of  our  favorite 
sofa  when  any  and  everything  possesses  charm.  You  may  be  sure 
that  eight  o'clock  was  never  forgotten,  but  I  can  scarcely  say  that  the 
remembrance  of  you  was  more  intimately  connected  with  that  than 
any  other  hour.  The  living  day  was  an  eight  o'clock."34  Eight  o'clock 
must  have  had  a  very  special  significance  to  the  two,  for  a  reference  to 
that  time  constantly  occurs  in  their  letters. 

A  week  after  writing  this  letter,  May  5,  1816,  he  was  in  Raleigh, 
where  he  arrived  weak  with  a  fever.  The  country  through  which  he 
had  passed  was  parched  with  the  drought  and  the  dust  was  thick  almost 
to  suffocation.  His  daughters  saw  him  in  the  distance,  and  their 
screams  of  delight  brought  Judge  Taylor  and  his  wife  running  to  the 
road.  Gaston  remained  in  the  capital  long  enough  to  attend  the  session 
of  the  court  and  then  went  on  to  New  Bern,  where  he  received  his  first 
letter  from  Eliza.  Warning  him  not  to  write  when  he  felt  unwell,  she 
continued, 

I  dreamed  of  you  as  pale  and  languid  and  couldn't  sleep.  For  the  sake 
of  those  who  love  you  so  dearly  take  care  of  yourself.  .  .  .  Don't  you 
think  it  was  indiscreet  to  travel  sixty  miles  when  sick.  ...  I  was  flat- 
tered you  did  stop  on  account  of  me.  ...  As  "interested"  is  a  favorite 
word  of  yours  I'll  use  it.   When  you  were  here  I  thought  I  could  not 

34  Same  to  same,  May  5,  1816,  Gaston  MSS. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


407 


freely  write  to  you,  but  now  I  have  to  hold  myself  back.  .  .  .  Remember 
your  tremulous  accents  on  the  evening  of  your  departure  and  "remem- 
ber eight"  ....  a  new  and  delightful  sentiment  is  now  in  my  heart, 
which  is  so  much  your  own.35 

On  that  same  day  Gaston  wrote  her  to  "congratulate  Miss  

on  her  marriage  this  spring,  which  is  a  good  season  to  marry  in  but  her 
best  friend  seems  to  like  the  fall  of  the  leaf  ....  in  May  is  the  season 
nature  invites  as  you  would  know  had  you  listened  as  I  did  to  the 

mocking  birds  here  " 

While  he  was  in  North  Carolina  Eliza  was  vacationing  at  Annapolis 
with  a  party  of  girl  friends,  whose  charms  were  so  alluring  that  Eliza 
confessed  she  would  not  introduce  him  to  them  until  he  was  hers. 
There,  even  among  the  gaiety  of  the  Maryland  capital  she  thought  of 
him,  stealing  away  from  the  party  below  to  write  him.  "I  cannot  be 
happy  from  your  side.  Never  till  now  did  I  know  how  much  I  loved. 
There  are  fifteen  of  us  here.  Tonight  there  will  be  a  large  party  of 
all  the  belles  and  beaus  of  Annapolis. "  Toward  the  end  of  June  while 
at  a  dance  at  the  governor's  mansion  she  slipped  away  from  the  floor, 
and  in  high  glee  related,  "The  girls  think  I  am  writing  Papa  and  don't 
know  what  an  interesting  occupation  I  am  engaged  in." 

After  a  hard  day  at  court  Gaston  relaxed  in  the  evening  at  the 
Taylor's,  where  he  played  and  talked  with  his  children,  telling  them  of 
Eliza,  to  whom  he  described  their  reactions  at  some  length.  He 
warned  her  not  to  think  "because  I  speak  of  Susan  more  she  is  my 

favorite  Hannah  is  intelligent,  affectionate,  and  unaffected,  and 

bears  a  striking  resemblance  to  her  mother,  but  Susan's  age  and 
reason  .  .  .  ."  He  spent  a  great  deal  of  time  between  Raleigh  and 
New  Bern.  Once  he  heard  that  his  sister  was  very  ill,  so  he  hurried 
from  New  Bern  to  Raleigh  in  twenty-four  hours,  boasting  to  Eliza 
that  this  was  "probably  the  shortest  time  it  was  ever  done." 

It  seems  that  a  certain  Major  Lewis  figured  prominently  in  their  love 
affair.  His  name  was  often  mentioned  by  both.  Asking  about  him 
Gaston  became  reminiscent, 

He  has  been  uneasy  for  us  for  two  years  as  he  knew  my  anti-matri- 
monial stand  and  saw  how  we  were  becoming  attached.  I  wish  he 
would  settle  down.  .  .  .  Do  you  remember  the  evening  at  Mrs.  Tayeves 
....  of  the  chess  party  the  next  night  and  of  the  night  after,  of  the 

35  Eliza  Worthington  to  Gaston,  May  19,  1816,  Gaston  MSS. 


408 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


meeting  at  Mr.  Carrol's  ....  of  the  Birth-Night  Assembly  ....  of  the 
steam  boat  party  and  the  gaiety  ....  Mr.  Mill's  hints  and  Mrs.  Lee's 
stronger  ones  ....  how  Matilda  Chase  noticed  the  interest  of  each 
others  society  we  ourselves  scarcely  noticed. 
A  charming  letter  of  June  21,  1816,  from  Eliza  deserves  some  quo- 
tation.  It  was  headed  Summer  Hill  and  read,  in  part : 

To  hear  the  voice  of  love  whispering  peace  and  comfort  to  the  heart 
when  it  is  oppressed  and  dissatisfied  with  itself  is  indeed  happiness  of 
such  exquisite  nature  that  language  cannot  do  it  justice.  .  .  .  What  a 
valuable  and  blessed  privilege  it  is  that  two  hearts  should  be  so  united 
as  to  admit  of  such  a  delightful  intercourse.  .  .  .  Letters  have  drawn  us 
nearer  each  other.  ...  I  wish  I  could  feel  worthy  of  such  devoted 
love.  .  .  .  The  clock  is  striking  midnight.  .  .  . 
From  Germantown  Eliza  informed  him  that  she  would  have  four 
bridesmaids,  so  he  would  have  to  make  arrangements  for  two  more 
attendants.    She  suggested  her  brother,  Dr.  Nicholas  Worthington, 
and  Lieutenant  Rodger s,  who  "was  almost  an  agent  of  the  affair  in  the 
beginning."    Major  Lewis  and  a  Mr.  Lee  were  to  be  the  other  two. 
The  wedding  was  to  take  place  in  the  Worthington  home,  with  only 
intimate  friends  present.    Gaston  left  North  Carolina  late  in  August, 
and  on  Tuesday  evening,  September  3,  1816,  the  two  were  married 
by  Father  John  Grassi,  president  of  Georgetown  College.36    If  ar- 
rangements previously  entered  into  were  followed,  the  couple  then 
left  Washington  for  New  Bern  the  middle  of  the  month,  arriving  there 
about  ten  days  later. 

When  the  second  session  of  Congress  convened  Gaston  brought 
the  entire  family  back  with  him,  and  they  lived  during  this  time  at 
his  father-in-law's  in  Georgetown.  Before  the  close  of  the  session  he 
had  to  return  to  Raleigh,  but  left  them  behind.  Eliza  took  the  chil- 
dren's education  into  her  own  hands.  All  rose  at  six,  and  from  nine  to 
eleven  o'clock  she  taught  them ;  Susan  practiced  with  her  music  lessons 
for  an  hour,  and  in  the  evening  they  rode  either  for  a  visit  or  simply 
for  exercise.  On  September  27,  1817,  their  first  child,  whom  they 
named  Eliza,  was  born  in  the  Worthington  home.  In  early  November, 
accompanied  by  her  brother,  Nicholas,  Eliza  set  out  with  the  children 
for  New  Bern,  Gaston  meeting  them  in  Richmond. 

In  the  little  town  of  his  birth  the  third  wife  of  the  congressman 
found  a  warm  welcome.   Gaston's  financial  status  was  in  such  a  good 
36  National  Intelligencer,  Sept.  5,  1816. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON  409 

state  that  he  could  afford  to  buy  a  fine  home  for  his  bride.  April  17, 
1818,  for  $6000  he  purchased  from  J.  Groenendyke  the  beautiful 
colonial  home,  built  around  1767,  located  on  Craven  and  New  Streets, 
with  the  lot  121  feet  by  142  feet.  The  double  veranda  had  a  delicate 
railing,  cunningly  wrought,  considered  by  many  to  be  superior  to  that 
of  the  famous  Stanly  home.  The  boards  of  the  outside  of  the  house 
were  evidently  taken  from  only  the  hearts  of  large  trees,  for  they  were 
that  wide.   The  spacious  rooms  of  the  house  were  beautifully  paneled. 

That  summer  Eliza  returned  to  Washington  for  a  visit.  In  the  late 
fall  she  was  back  in  New  Bern,  from  where  she  wrote  her  husband, 
who  was  at  the  state  capital,  that  "the  change  in  the  weather  has  pro- 
duced acidity  again,  which  plagues  me  not  a  little,  but  I  live  upon 
magnesia  which  I  find  is  the  only  remedy.  I  am  too  important  a  per- 
sonage now  to  neglect  anything  that  will  keep  me  in  tolerable  health. 
You  know  the  all  important  period  is  a  month  later  and  I  am  so  appre- 
hensive."37 January  6,  1819,  Catherine  Jane  was  born  in  the  Gaston 
home.  After  the  event  anxiety  was  high  as  Eliza  did  not  recover 
as  she  should ;  thirteen  days  later  her  apprehensions  were  realized,  for 
despite  frantic  efforts  of  their  physician  she  quietly  slipped  into  a 
lasting  sleep.  She  was  buried  from  Christ  Church,  the  Reverend 
Richard  S.  Mason,  Episcopalian  minister,  officiating  at  the  funeral.38 
The  latter  had  also  baptized  her  child,  Nicholas  Worthington,  Jane 
Taylor  and  Susan  being  sponsors.39  The  blow  was  almost  more  than 
her  husband  could  face,  until  he  sought  comfort  in  his  religion.  At 
forty-one  he  was  widowed  for  the  third  time.40 

37  Eliza  to  Gaston,  Dec.  3,  1818,  Gaston  MSS. 

38  Register  of  Baptisms,  Burials,  and  Marriages,  Christ's  Church,  New  Bern, 
N.  C,  p.  75. 

39  Ibid.,  p.  1. 

40  May  23,  1814  Gaston  wrote  the  Archbishop  of  Baltimore  for  advice  con- 
cerning a  possible  religious  impediment  to  a  marriage  he  was  contemplating, 
which  depended  "on  the  probability  that  the  individual  with  whom  I  might  be 
disposed  to  form  a  union  would  not  merely  make  a  virtuous  and  agreeable  help- 
mate, but  also  a  faithful  and  affectionate  mother  to  my  bereaved  children.  To 
one  individual  my  mind  has  been  very  forcibily  directed  as  a  person  peculiarly 
fitted  to  secure  both  these  objects.  In  infancy  she  was  the  playmate,  and  in  more 
mature  life  has  been  the  companion  and  bosom  friend  of  my  late  inestimable 
wife.  .  .  Her  childhood  was  passed  under  the  pious  care  of  my  venerable  Mother, 
by  whom  at  the  request  of  a  dying  Father  she  was  educated  a  Catholic  ...  I 
seriously  looked  forward  to  a  declaration  of  my  wishes  when  an  obstacle  suddenly 
presented  itself  which  I  had  never  anticipated."  Gaston  then  asked  the  archbishop 
if  the  impediment  was  too  serious  for  removal  or  if  it  existed  at  all.  It  seemed  that 
the  lady  was  god-mother  of  one  of  his  children,  which  was  the  difficulty  in  question. 
The  archbishop's  answer  is  unknown,  but  Gaston  thought  better  of  taking  the  step. 
A  few  months  later  he  told  John  Burghwin  that  he  had  thought  for  a  while  of 
doing  this  because  of  his  children,  but  doubted  the  risk.    BCA,  3Y4. 


410 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


At  this  time  Alexander  was  twelve,  Susan  eleven,  Hannah  eight, 
Eliza  Ann  not  yet  two,  and  Catherine  but  a  baby  of  two  weeks.  Gaston 
sent  the  two  oldest  girls  to  school  at  St.  Joseph's  in  Emmitsburg, 
Maryland,  Alexander  to  Mount  Saint  Mary's,  Emmitsburg,  and  the 
babies  were  taken  to  his  father-in-law's  home  in  Georgetown.  From 
this  time  dated  Gaston's  dependence  upon  his  favorite  child,  Susan. 
His  letters  to  her  and  the  others  are  characteristic  of  the  man.  Not 
long  after  their  departure  for  school,  from  the  lonely  home  in  New 
Bern,  he  wrote  his  eldest  daughter, 

Remember,  my  dear  Susan,  that  I  look  to  you  as  my  great  and  efficient 
coadjutor  in  the  instruction  of  your  sisters.   You  are  charged  not  only 
with  your  welfare  but  theirs.  ...  I  go  where  human  comforts  can  only 
reach  me  through  news  of  my  children's  well  doing.    Let  me  have 
this  consolation.    Let  my  solicitude  and  toils  be  cheered  by  learning 
that  my  darling  daughters  are  running  the  race  of  virtue  and  knowl- 
edge and  are  growing  daily  in  grace  and  favor  with  God  and  man. 
Guard  against  melancholy  which  is  a  foe  to  mental  vigor  and  bodily 
health  and  is  a  species  of  treason  against  the  divine  law.41 
Gaston  kept  them  in  this  school  of  the  renowned  and  virtuous 
Mother  Seton  until  1822,  at  which  time  the  two  were  separated.  In 
August  he  visited  Philadelphia  to  make  arrangements  for  Susan's 
further  education,  while  Hannah  remained  at  St.  Joseph's.  Before 
his  visit  Gaston  had  written  Joseph  Hopkinson,  telling  him  of  this 
project  and  asking  his  aid.   Hopkinson,  son  of  a  signer  of  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence,  author  of  Hail  Columbia,  one  of  the  foremost 
lawyers  of  his  time,  had  been  in  Congress  with  Gaston,  and  the  two 
soon  formed  a  close  friendship.   Writing  about  Susan  he  further  said, 
I  had  designed  visiting  Washington  during  the  session  of  the  Supreme 
Court  and  promised  myself  much  pleasure  from  meeting  with  you  there. 
But  this  promise  like  many  other  more  important  schemes  in  which  I 
have  been  accustomed  to  indulge  my  fancy  was  but  the  harbinger  of 
disappointment.    A  special  criminal  court  called  at  this  place  about 
the  end  of  January  compelled  me  to  forego  the  gratification  of  seeing 
my  children  and  talking  with  all  my  friends.    In  the  number  of  these 
I  need  not  say  that  you  are  included.    To  use  the  homely  but  expres- 
sive phrase  of  my  country  'I  took  to  you  mightily  from  the  first.'  You 
may  be  assured  that  I  shall  not  pass  through  any  place  you  are  without 
giving  you  a  call.42 

41  Gaston  to  Susan,  March  21,  Feb.  28,  1820,  Gaston  MSS. 

42  Gaston  to  Joseph  Hopkinson,  March  22,  1822,  Hopkinson  Collection,  Penn- 
sylvania State  Historical  Society,  Philadelphia. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


411 


Susan  was  received  with  love  and  kindness  on  her  visits  to  the 
Hopkinson  home  during  her  schooling  at  Philadelphia.  Gaston  was 
delighted  that  his  fifteen-year  old  daughter  had  found  a  place  in  their 
hearts,  telling  them  "dear  to  me  is  my  blue-eyed  Susan."  January  4, 
1823,  in  answer  to  Hopkinson's  query  he  stated, 

I  thank  you  for  your  friendly  letter  of  December  16th,  which  I  yes- 
terday received  at  Raleigh.  The  kind  things  you  say  of  my  child  come 
home  to  my  heart  and  favorably  as  I  have  always  thought  of  your 
judgment  I  now  set  it  up  as  unerring.  You  must  take  care  therefore 
not  to  ask  anything  from  me  about  her  which  you  are  not  confident 
that  it  will  be  proper  to  grant.  That  she  should  occasionally  and  without 
[  —  ]  mingle  in  your  family  circle  would  afford  me  high  gratification. 
But  I  believe  it  would  be  better  that  she  should  not  frequently  have  this 
enjoyment.  When  a  girl  sees  much  society  her  mind  is  liable  to  be- 
come dissipated — serious  studies  are  regarded  as  irksome  and  she  is 
too  apt  to  fancy  herself  a  woman.  My  dear  daughter  has  years  yet 
in  which  I  wish  her  to  be  considered  and  to  consider  herself  a  child. 
As  to  the  Theatre — I  could  not  refuse  her  permission,  if  she  asked  it, 
to  see  a  play  or  two  in  the  course  of  the  season,  but  I  could  be  quite  as 
well  pleased  that  she  did  not  ask  it.  Such  amusements  can  add  nothing 
to  her  happiness  and  may  give  her  an  early  fancy  for  dress,  vanity, 
etc.  I  am  engaged  here  in  attendance  on  our  supreme  court  and  will 
probably  be  here  detained  throughout  the  months.  Whether  I  can 
visit  Philadelphia  before  next  summer  is  as  yet  uncertain.  Few  things 
would  give  me  greater  enjoyment  than  to  spend  two  or  three  weeks 
there.  To  see  my  child  every  day  and  to  mingle  familiarly  with  the 
delightful  society  of  your  city,  with  the  learned  and  the  gay  and  the 
polite,  is  among  the  highest  gratifications  which  my  fancy  can  con- 
ceive.43 

He  was  troubled  over  the  expense  of  his  daughters'  education,  which 
he  considered  excessive.  Entries  upon  his  accounts,  such  as  $230  for 
Alexander,  $270  for  Hannah,  $300  for  Susan,  $500  for  Hannah,  were 
frequent.  Concerning  this  worry,  early  in  1823,  he  confided  to  Hop- 
kinson : 

The  charges  attending  my  daughter's  education  are  indeed  incon- 
veniently high — more  especially  when  I  am  solicitously  engaged  in 
paying  off  debts  which  a  neglected  profession,  a  mismanaged  estate 
and  confidence  rashly  bestowed  caused  to  grow  during  my  public 
career.  I  grudge  them  not — if  they  are  necessary.  Any  plan  which 
you  or  Mrs.  Hopkinson  will  have  the  goodness  to  suggest  by  which 

43  Same  to  same,  Jan.  4,  1823,  Hopkinson  Collection. 


412 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


they  may  be  lessened  will  be  gladly  received.    As  I  can  not  expect  to 
see  you  earlier  than  July  or  August  I  would  ask  the  favor  of  you  not 
to  postpone  writing.   If  the  excessive  discount  on  state  paper  could  be 
prevented  it  would  be  something. 
Then,  turning  to  the  subject  of  his  daughter's  welfare,  he  continued, 
"I  rejoice  to  hear  that  Susan  is  well.    Should  you  discover  anything 
relating  to  her  which  you  deem  not  exactly  as  it  should  be,  in  mind, 
manners,  habit,  fear  not  to  let  me  know.    My  parental  partiality  de- 
ceives me  much  if  she  have  not  the  material  out  of  which  an  amiable 
woman  may  be  educed.   Skill  and  care  in  management  are  necessary — 
perhaps  in  regard  to  her,  particularly  necessary." 

However,  this  expense  became  so  burdensome  that  later  in  the  year 
he  asked  Archbishop  Marechal  for  advice  about  schools  in  Baltimore. 
He  told  the  archbishop  he  would  like  to  have  the  two  girls  together  so 
that  the  younger  might  by  her  sister's  example  correct  an  indolence  of 
disposition,  but  the  exorbitant  price  at  Mrs.  Ligaine's  school  in  Phila- 
delphia, where  Susan  was  placed,  prevented  the  attendance  of  both 
there.  44  The  advice  of  Roger  B.  Taney  was  also  sought,  but  no  satis- 
factory solution  was  found,  so  the  twelve-year-old  Hannah  remained 
at  Emmitsburg.45 

After  Susan's  vacation  that  summer,  in  New  Bern,  Gaston  was 
particularly  anxious  that  she  receive  the  best  of  care,  for  as  he  told 
his  friend  in  Philadelphia, 

The  coming  year  is  of  vast  importance  to  Susan.  It  will  be  the  last 
which  she  spends  in  school.  Intent  as  she  is  on  improvement  she 
needs  nothing  but  fit  instructors  and  a  proper  plan  of  studies.  Re- 
moved as  I  am  from  her  I  cannot  enter  into  the  details  of  her  educa- 
tion. I  ask  it  of  your  friendship  from  time  to  time  to  enquire  into 
them — to  ascertain  what  are  the  studies  to  which  her  attention  is  di- 
rected, whether  she  has  the  proper  facilities,  books,  maps,  etc.,  for 
prosecuting  them,  whether  her  teachers  are  of  the  best  sort  and  use 
due  diligence  in  instructing,  and  to  direct  such  changes  and  give  orders 
for  such  help  as  a  father  on  the  spot  would  deem  himself  authorized 
to  make.  Occasional  inquiries  about  her  health  I  beg  may  not  be 
neglected. 

I  will  not  apologize  for  thus  troubling  you  for  were  I  near  one  of 
your  children  and  you  far  distant  I  should  be  vexed  at  the  doubt  which 

44  Gaston  to  Archbishop  Marechal,  Aug.  12,  1823,  BCA,  17C2. 
46  R.  B.  Taney  to  Gaston,  Aug.  7,  1823,  Gaston  MSS. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


413 


an  apology  for  charging  me  with  its  welfare  would  imply.  Alexander 
goes  home  in  two  months  and  spends  the  winter  with  me.  He  is 
wonderfully  grown.  ...  If  I  can  succeed  in  converting  a  passion  for 
military  glory  into  an  ambition  for  forensic  distinction  I  hope  to  make 
something  of  him.46 

Another  problem  soon  was  placed  before  the  anxious  parent  by  his 
friend,  and  his  reply  was  probably  not  unexpected,  but  rather  charac- 
teristic : 

I  had  the  pleasure  a  few  days  since  of  receiving  your  kind  letter.  The 
interest  you  have  the  goodness  to  take  in  the  welfare  and  improvement 
of  my  daughter  is  such  I  had  expected  from  your  friendship.  I  long 
to  hear  of  your  visits  to  her  and  of  your  opinion  in  regard  to  her 
progress.  No  change  can  be  made  which  will  diminish  the  expense 
of  her  education  and  as  these  are  to  continue  but  one  year  more  I  will 
submit  to  their  extravagance  without  repining.  No  doubt  you  have 
in  Philadelphia  libraries  of  all  sorts  to  which  access  may  be  had  for  a 
small  charge.  I  wish  Susan  to  have  an  opportunity  of  reading  the  best 
works  of  Bourdalane,  Massillon,  and  Bossuet  in  the  original  and  have 
recommended  them  to  her  for  her  Sunday  reading.  Will  you  be  good 
enough  to  put  her  in  the  way  of  procuring  them  ?  With  a  good  voice 
she  has  an  almost  invincible  repugnance  to  singing  in  company.  As 
yOu  may  have  the  means  be  kind  enough  to  use  them  for  conquering 
this  diffidence.  You  will  see  how  freely  I  avail  myself  of  your  per- 
mission to  trouble  you  with  her  concerns. 

On  the  subject  of  Susan  seeing  company  I  have  a  difficulty  in  forming 
a  definite  opinion.    I  am  well  aware  that  many  advantages  may  be 
derived  from  it  which  she  needs.   Were  I  with  her  so  as  to  be  able  to 
check  at  once  any  excess  which  an  association  with  the  fashionable 
and  gay  might  threaten  I  would  delight  to  bring  her  more  into  society. 
But  as  this  cannot  be,  and  as  the  main  object  of  her  stay  in  Philadel- 
phia is  the  cultivation  of  her  mind  I  fear  to  hazard  this  by  exposing 
her  to  the  dissipation  of  amusements.47 
At  the  end  of  the  summer  of  1824  Susan's  school  days  were  over, 
and  she  came  home  to  become  the  mistress  of  the  Gaston  house  in  New 
Bern.    For  the  next  three  years  she  retained  this  position  until  she 
found  romance  in  the  person  of  Robert  Donaldson,  a  young  Scotch 
merchant  from  New  York  City,  who  had  financial  interests  in  North 
Carolina.    In  giving  his  permission  to  the  match  Gaston  told  Donald- 
son, "I  have  confidence  in  the  judgment  of  my  daughter  and  cheerfully 

46  Gaston  to  Hopkinson,  Aug.  26,  1823,  Hopkinson  Collection. 

47  Same  to  same,  Sept.  21,  1823,  Hopkinson  Collection. 


414 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


give  my  approbation.  She  is  a  gift  the  value  of  which  none  can  know 
as  well  as  I.  Long  has  she  been  my  pride,  joy,  and  solace."48  They 
were  married  in  Gaston's  home  on  February  14,  1828,  by  Bishop 
John  England.49  The  twenty-year  old  girl  and  her  husband  during  the 
winter  lived  at  Fayetteville,  and  in  summer  at  his  home  in  New  York 
on  the  Hudson  River,  near  that  of  Chancellor  Kent. 

Hannah  finished  her  education  at  a  private  school  in  Baltimore,  and 
then  returned  to  take  Susan's  place  in  the  household,  until  her  mar- 
riage to  Mathias  E.  Manly,  which  took  place  on  February  16,  1832,  in 
the  Gaston  home ;  the  ceremony  being  performed  by  Father  Richard  S. 
Baker.50  Manly  was  a  young  lawyer,  well  liked  by  his  father-in-law, 
who  held  his  legal  talents  in  high  respect.  After  Gaston's  death  Manly 
served  on  the  bench  of  the  state  supreme  court.  A  year  before 
Hannah's  marriage,  Alexander  had  been  married  in  Christ's  Church 
by  the  Reverend  J.  R.  Goodman  to  Eliza  Jones,  the  daughter  of  Dr. 
Hugh  Jones.51  In  the  meanwhile  Eliza  and  Catherine  were  attending 
school  at  the  Georgetown  Visitation  Convent,  where  their  bill  for  a 
year  amounted  to  over  $1000. 

After  his  appointment  to  the  state  supreme  court  Gaston  had  much 
more  leisure  time,  so  he  used  to  go  to  New  York  each  fall  to  visit 
Susan.  While  there  he  would  spend  long  evenings  with  Chancellor 
Kent,  and  if  possible  would  go  farther  north  to  visit  other  old  friends. 
Story  and  Tichnor  asked  to  be  given  "the  earliest  notice  of  your  arrival 
in  Boston,"  and  a  friend  from  North  Carolina  informed  him  that 
"Jeremiah  Mason's  beautiful  daughter  tells  me  that  he  frequently 
speaks  of  you  as  one  of  his  favorite  friends."52 

With  the  marriage  of  his  three  eldest  children  Gaston  now  devoted 
most  of  his  parental  efforts  to  the  two  youngest,  who  were  with  him. 
When  Manly  had  became  involved  in  a  political  contest  with  a  friend 
of  the  Gastons,  the  judge  expressed  relief  that  the  latter  had  withdrawn 
and  he  warned  his  daughters  not  even  to  allude  to  it  as  "nothing  is  more 

48  Gaston  to  Robert  Donaldson,  June  2,  1827,  Gaston  MSS. 

49  Records  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  New  Bern,  N.  C. 

60  Ibid.,  1832. 

61  Register  .  .  .  Christ's  Church,  p.  134. 

52  J.  S.  Jones  to  Gaston,  Nov.  8,  1833,  Gaston  MSS. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


415 


unfeminine  as  to  take  part  in  any  political  strife."  Governor  David  L. 
Swain  often  visited  Gaston  and  the  girls. 

The  three  spent  much  of  their  time  on  the  plantation,  going  there  at 
least  a  day  or  two  every  week,  especially  so  after  the  death  of  Hannah, 
who  died  on  March  16,  1835,  leaving  a  daughter,  Jane  Manly.  The 
week  following  this  the  three  spent  in  the  country ;  rising  every  morn- 
ing with  the  sun,  they  breakfasted  at  seven,  and  then  rode  horseback 
over  the  fields  and  hills  till  noon.  Every  afternoon  they  took  a  long 
walk,  and  tired  out  with  their  long  day,  they  retired  at  nine  o'clock.  For 
some  time  Gaston  had  his  son,  Alexander,  running  his  plantation  at 
Bryce's  Creek.  His  cotton  often  was  shipped  to  Donaldson  for  dis- 
posal. Although  Gaston  was  very  proud  of  his  rural  standing,  he  was 
not  much  of  a  farmer,  as  an  incident  related  of  him  by  an  old  farmer 
indicates.  It  seems  that  Gaston  took  a  neighborhood  planter  out  to  his 
plantation  to  view  the  work,  and  proudly  pointed  out  how  neatly  the 
irrigation  ditches  were  laid  out.  The  farmer  chuckled  and  to  Gaston's 
chagrin  demonstrated  that  although  they  looked  very  nice  they  were 
impractical  as  they  ran  in  the  wrong  direction.  Another  amusing 
incident,  often  related  by  himself,  occurred  when  he  was  riding  in  his 
gig  past  a  schoolhouse  and  stopped  at  the  sight  of  a  small  boy  by  the 
road ;  Gaston  spelled  out  loud,  BA,  ba,  KER,  ker,  BAKER,  to  which 
the  boy  immediately  replied,  DAM,  dam,  FOOL,  fool,  DAM  FOOL.53 

The  joy  and  delight  he  experienced  in  his  children  was  well  ex- 
pressed by  him  to  his  old  friend,  Dr.  Beasley,  "I  rejoice  to  learn  you 
are  so  blessed  in  your  children.  An  old  man,  surrounded  by  affection- 
ate children  whom  he  has  trained  up  to  virtue  and  usefulness,  and  by 
whom  he  is  regarded  with  gratitude  and  reverence  is  to  me  one  of  the 
most  interesting  objects  in  the  world." 

The  name  of  Gaston  is  inextricably  bound  up  with  the  Catholic 
Church  in  the  state  of  North  Carolina,  and  especially  so  in  New  Bern. 
The  earliest  known  Catholics  to  be  located  there  were  the  English 
merchants,  Margaret  Sharpe's  brothers,  who  is  1774  lived  in  New 
Bern.  There  was  no  priest  in  the  state  at  the  time,  and  it  is  unknown 
what  official  presided  at  the  marriage  of  Margaret  and  Alexander. 

63  I  am  indebted  for  these  incidents  to  the  Honorable  R.  A.  Nunn  of  New  Bern. 
An  old  farmer,  whose  father  knew  Gaston,  related  the  incident  to  him.  Cf. 
Gaston  Republican,  Gastonia,  N.  C.,  for  June  14,  1917. 


416 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


The  first  priest  to  visit  New  Bern,  and  possibly  the  entire  state, 
was  Patrick  Cleary,  an  Irishman,  who  had  been  a  canon  of  the  church 
of  Funehal,  and  came  to  the  town  around  1784  to  claim  the  property 
of  his  dead  brother.  Mrs.  Gaston  arranged  one  of  the  rooms  of  her 
house  for  a  chapel  where  he  celebrated  Mass,  which  was  attended  by 
three  or  four  other  Catholics,  including  John  Devereux.  Father 
Cleary  baptized  a  few  children  and  performed  other  religious  duties, 
but  was  in  no  position  to  give  instructions  as  he  spoke  English  with 
difficulty.  He  had  not  intended  to  remain  long  at  this  place,  but  the 
litigation  over  the  property  was  so  involved  and  extended  over  such  a 
long  period  that  the  poor  man  was  fated  never  again  to  leave  New 
Bern.  He  died  some  time  in  1790  and  was  buried  in  the  cemetery  of 
Christ's  Church,  where  his  grave  may  still  be  seen.  As  far  as  is 
known  he  was  the  first  priest  to  be  buried  in  the  state  and  up  to  1825 
seemed  to  be  the  only  one.  For  some  time  after  his  death  the  few 
Catholics  there  were  without  the  ministrations  of  a  priest,  but  Mrs. 
Gaston  instructed  her  children  in  the  doctrines  of  the  Church  and 
taught  them  their  prayers. 

When  her  son  became  a  student  of  Georgetown  College  he  soon  came 
into  contact  with  Bishop  Carroll  and  told  him  of  the  situation  in  North 
Carolina.  The  bishop  wished  to  send  a  priest  into  the  state,  but  said 
he  had  none  for  the  purpose.54  When  the  lad  was  forced  to  leave  the 
college  his  mother  advised  the  president  of  the  situation,  and  at  the 
same  time  asked  him  to  inform  the  bishop  that  if  the  latter  would 
send  a  missionary  into  the  state  she  would  take  care  of  part  of  the 
expenses  involved.55  However,  nothing  could  be  done  by  Bishop 
Carroll,  for  he  simply  did  not  have  the  priests. 

In  1798  another  Irish  clergyman,  a  certain  Father  Burke,  came  to 
New  Bern  from  Norfolk,  remaining  but  a  short  time.  Some  years 
later  Father  Gallagher  came  there  to  witness  the  wedding  of  William  to 
Hannah  McClure.  In  July,  1807,  and  June,  1808,  Father  Michael 
Lacy  of  Norfolk  spent  a  few  days  in  the  town,  attending  to  the  spiritual 
needs  of  the  few  Catholics.  Late  in  1811,  Margaret  Gaston,  William's 
mother,  who  had  done  more  for  the  Church  than  any  other  person  in 
the  state,  died  and  was  buried  in  Cedar  Grove  Cemetery. 

54  Gaston  to  his  mother,  Nov.  24,  1792,  Gaston  MSS. 

55  Rev.  F.  Neale  to  Margaret  Gaston,  Oct.  18,  1793,  Gaston  MSS. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


417 


Bishop  Carroll  had  not  forgotten  the  few  Catholics  of  North  Caro- 
lina and  he  told  Gaston  that  he  hoped  to  have  a  priest  there  some 
time.  However,  in  replying  to  the  bishop's  letter  of  consolation  over 
the  death  of  his  mother,  Gaston  informed  him  that  he  intended  to  visit 
the  North  that  summer  to  choose  a  new  home,  which  might  be  in  Balti- 
more. Of  this  decision  he  said,  "Tender  and  strong  are  the  ties  which 
bind  me  to  my  native  state,  but  considerations  of  a  paramount  nature 
require  of  me  to  break  them.  I  have  a  family  of  lovely  and  promising 
children,  and  I  am  above  all  things  solicitious  that  they  be  reared  in 
some  place  where  a  regular  and  stated  observance  of  all  the  ordinances 
of  the  Church  may  keep  alive  and  reimpress  on  their  minds  a  sense  of 
religious  duty."56  However,  that  summer  war  broke  out  with 
England;  Gaston  entered  politics  actively  and  was  soon  representing 
his  state  in  Congress.  The  following  year  his  wife,  Hannah,  died 
and  the  children  went  to  live  with  his  sister  for  a  time.  Gaston  did  not 
again  seriously  consider  leaving  the  state,  although  Joseph  Hopkinson 
tried  to  persuade  him  to  move  to  Philadelphia. 

Meanwhile,  Archbishop  Carroll  was  not  able  to  find  a  priest  for  the 
state,  so  that  for  several  more  years  the  people  never  saw  one.  Then, 
again  from  Norfolk,  in  1819  and  1820,  New  Bern  was  visited  by  a  priest 
who  stayed  a  few  days,  the  Reverend  Nicholas  Kearney.  The  latter 
year  he  remained  a  fortnight,  preached  several  times,  baptized  a  num- 
ber of  children,  and  received  three  converts  into  the  Church.57  After 
Father  Kearney's  first  visit  Gaston  wrote  to  Archbishop  Marechal, 
requesting  that  a  priest  be  sent  to  Washington,  North  Carolina.  He 
told  the  archbishop  that  the  priest's  expenses  would  be  paid  by  "Mr. 
Hanrahan  and  Mr.  Leroy  [of  Washington],  who  will  also  furnish 
board,  servants  and  horses.  I  will  do  the  same  at  New  Bern  and  he 
can  stay  at  my  house.  I  am  solicitious  for  others  of  the  Church  who 
cannot  have  the  same  facilities  and  who  long  for  an  opportunity  for 
practicing  the  duties  of  their  religion."58  Gaston  had  already  placed 
his  children  in  Catholic  schools  in  the  North  as  his  last  wife,  Eliza 
Ann,  had  died  in  January,  1819.  Although  Marechal  could  not  accede 

66  Gaston  to  Archbishop  Carroll,  Jan.  30,  1812,  BCA,  3Y3. 

67  United  States  Catholic  Miscellany,  March  17,  1824. 
"Gaston  to  Archbishop  Marechah  Aug.  20,  1819,  BCA,  17C1. 


418 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


to  his  request,  it  was  not  long  before  the  state  received  the  attention  it 
desired  in  the  person  of  Bishop  John  England  of  Charleston. 

John  England  was  born  in  1786  at  Cork,  Ireland,  and  was  ordained 
a  priest  in  1809.  He  was  consecrated  as  first  Bishop  of  Charleston  on 
September  21,  1820,  and  refused  to  take  the  customary  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  England,  announcing  his  intention  to  become  an  American 
citizen.  He  arrived  in  Charleston  December  30,  1820,  to  find  that 
his  diocese  covered  the  States  of  South  Carolina,  North  Carolina,  and 
Georgia.  Ten  days  after  his  arrival  in  the  new  diocese  he  wrote  to 
Gaston  for  information  on  the  state  of  religion  in  North  Carolina.  He 
told  Gaston  he  had  heard  of  his  zeal  for  religion  and  counted  on  his 
aid.59  The  following  May  he  informed  Gaston  of  his  approaching 
arrival  in  New  Bern,  and  asked  him  to  make  proper  arrangements  for 
his  preaching.60  May  24,  1821,  the  first  bishop  to  visit  New  Bern  was 
welcomed  at  the  Gaston  home.  Here,  in  the  large  ballroom  in  the  front 
of  the  house,  the  bishop  celebrated  Mass.  He  remained  in  town  until 
June  4,  administering  the  sacraments,  and  at  night  preaching  in  the 
court  house  "always  to  a  very  large  and  respectable  congregation." 
Before  leaving  the  bishop  appointed  five  of  the  principal  Catholics  to 
conduct  services  every  Sunday  at  the  little  chapel  in  Gaston's  home. 
The  need  of  a  church  building  was  discussed,  and  a  treasury  was 
created  to  receive  funds  for  the  purpose;  Gaston  contributed  $700; 
John  Devereux  $500 ;  Peter  Burghman  $400 ;  Francis  Lamott  $200, 
and  Benjamin  Good  $200.  Later  a  lot  106  feet  by  199  feet  was  pur- 
chased from  Richard  L.  Mason  for  $1500.61  The  bishop  returned  for 
a  short  visit  the  next  November. 

His  first  appointment  of  a  priest  for  the  state,  the  Reverend  Anthony 
O'Hannon,  arrived  in  New  Bern  in  May,  1822,  but  he  remained 
scarcely  two  weeks  because  of  poor  health.  The  following  year  Bishop 

59  Bishop  England  to  Gaston,  Jan.  9,  1821,  Gaston  MSS.  There  are  numerous 
references  to  Gaston  and  the  history  of  the  Catholic  Church  in  North  Carolina 
in  Peter  Guilday,  Life  and  Times  of  John  England,  2  Vols.,  (New  York,  1927), 
as  well  as  in  The  Works  of  John  England,  7  Vols.,  edited  by  Sebastian  G.  Messmer 
(Cleveland,  1908). 

60  Bishop  England  to  Gaston,  May  17,  1821,  American  Catholic  Historical 
Society  Records  and  Studies,  XVIII,  367.  Hereafter  referred  to  as:  ACHS  Re- 
cords. 

61  Records  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  New  Bern  N.  C. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


419 


England  came  back  and  at  this  time  preached  in  the  Presbyterian 
church,  which  was  placed  at  his  disposal.  By  this  time  the  bishop 
had  become  a  popular  man  in  New  Bern,  not  only  because  of  his 
friendship  with  William  Gaston,  but  also  through  his  own  radiating 
personality.  During  his  visit  there  in  February,  1824,  he  published  a 
constitution  for  the  Church  in  North  Carolina,  "with  some  few  amend- 
ments suggested  by  the  Honorable  William  Gaston."62  St.  Paul  the 
Apostle  was  named  the  patron  of  the  diocese.  Gaston  and  Benjamin 
Good  were  appointed  church  wardens,  and  these  two  with  Peter 
Brughman  and  Francis  Lamott  were  made  vestrymen.63  By  summer 
a  priest,  Father  Francis  O'Donoghue,  was  appointed  to  North  Caro- 
lina. He  was  followed  in  1833  by  Father  Peter  Whelan,  in  1834  by 
Father  Richard  S.  Baker,  in  1835  by  Father  John  Fielding,  in  1839 
by  Father  Andrew  Doyle,  and  in  1841  by  Father  Edward  Quigley.  In 
1832  Bishop  England  figured  there  were  500  Catholics  in  North  Caro- 
lina. He  had  difficulty  in  getting  priests  to  remain  in  New  Bern,  for, 
as  they  told  him,  they  received  nothing  there  in  support  except  what 
Gaston  and  Manly  contributed.  In  1838  there  were  two  priests  in  the 
eastern  section  of  the  state,  but  difficulty  was  experienced  in  raising 
funds  for  their  subsistence.  Gaston  wrote  to  the  Catholics  of  Wash- 
ington, North  Carolina,  asking  them  to  help  provide  for  the  traveling 
expenses  of  the  priests.  He  told  them  that  the  Catholics  of  New  Bern 
had  already  adopted  such  a  plan.  "It  will  be  disgraceful  to  us  if  we 
cannot  in  this  way  insure  $500  to  $600  for  the  two.  $100  will  be  con- 
tributed from  here  and  I  will  answer  for  $100  or  $150,  if  needed 
he  concluded.64 

In  June,  1839,  a  resolution  was  adopted  by  the  Catholics  of  New 
Bern  to  build  a  church,  and  on  October  28,  1839,  at  a  meeting  in 
Gaston's  office  a  plan  for  a  church  costing  $4000  was  submitted  by 
William  H.  Burghman.  It  was  found  there  was  a  balance  of  $500 
remaining  in  the  treasury ;  Gaston  then  pledged  $500,  Mathias  Manly 
$500,  and  Bishop  England  $500  toward  the  new  church.  One  of  the 
town's  residents,  a  Dr.  Hays,  who  was  a  Protestant,  had  been  inter- 

62  Carolina  Sentinel,  March  6,  1824. 

63  Records  of  St.  Paul's  Church,  Feb.  15,  1824. 

64  Gaston  to  Benj.  Laverrder,  Jan.  22,  1838,  Raleigh  Diocesean  Archives, 
Bishop's  Residence,  Raleigh,  N.  C. 


420 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


ested  in  the  struggle  of  the  Catholics,  and  left  them  in  his  will  an  estate 
valued  at  $1 100.  A  contract  was  drawn  up  between  Gaston  and  Hardy 
Lanes  to  build  the  church  for  $3784.34  and  work  was  started  on  it  in 
1840.  England  told  Gaston  that  "we  will  do  nothing  without  you,  we 
will  do  everything  with  you/'  The  following  year  it  was  finished,  but 
it  was  not  blessed  until  1844  by  England's  successor,  Bishop  Reynolds. 

Bishop  England  was  a  man  of  extraordinary  ability,  courage  and 
accomplishments.  In  1822  he  founded  the  first  distinctively  Catholic 
newspaper  in  the  United  States,  the  United  States  Catholic  Miscellany, 
and  also  found  time  to  prepare  a  new  edition  of  the  missal  in  English. 
In  1823  Eastern  Florida  was  added  to  his  administration.  Chancellor 
James  Kent  felt  that  he  had  revived  classical  learning  in  South  Caro- 
lina. Four  times  he  went  to  Europe  to  collect  funds  for  his  impover- 
ished diocese.  He  was  asked  to  speak  before  Congress  in  1826,  which 
was  the  first  time  a  Catholic  priest  was  so  honored.  After  this  event 
he  talked  to  President  John  Quincy  Adams,  who  expressed  great  sur- 
prise that  Gaston  was  a  Catholic  church  warden.65 

England  found  in  Gaston  a  firm  friend  and  helpful  worker.  After 
establishing  the  Miscellany  he  was  constantly  writing  Gaston  for  aid 
in  the  venture,  asking  for  both  funds  and  new  subscribers.  He  also 
asked  him  to  "translate  some  select  edifying  passage  from  some  of 
those  good  books  of  which  you  are  so  fond  ....  or  ...  .  write  some- 
thing in  the  shape  of  a  letter  or  of  a  paragraph  or  of  a  dissertation  .... 
you  will  greatly  relieve  my  editorial  labors."  He  told  him  that  he 
wished  a  candid  opinion  upon  the  paper  and  what  improvement  was 
necessary.  Gaston's  answer  must  have  been  frank,  for  later  England 
hoped  that  he  was  better  pleased  with  the  paper  than  before.66  In  1826 
England  needed  $1000  for  the  printing  office,  and  again  turned  to  his 
friend  in  North  Carolina,  remarking  "I  do  not  know  whether  you 
ought  to  be  asked  to  add  to  your  former  loan  under  a  better  prospect 
of  repayment,  but  if  you  could,  any  aid  would  be  highly  useful."67 

Gaston's  legal  advice  was  often  sought  by  Bishop  England.  Others 
also  leaned  on  his  legal  knowledge  and  he  was  drawn  slightly  into  the 

65  England  to  Gaston,  Jan.  29,  1826,  ACHS  Records,  XIX.  104. 

66  Same  to  same,  Oct.  13,  1824,  ACHS  Records,  XIX,  101. 

67  Same  to  same,  Feb.  21,  1826,  ACHS  Records,  XIX,  106. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


421 


trustee  trouble  at  St.  Mary's  Church  in  Philadelphia.68  In  the  Harrold 
case  Bishop  England  turned  to  him.69  As  early  as  1823  Bishop 
England  had  asked  Gaston  if  he  could  not  procure  a  change  in  the 
thirty-second  article  of  the  state  constitution  of  North  Carolina,  which 
seemed  to  disbar  Catholics  from  holding  office.  Without  Gaston's 
aid  the  priests  who  came  to  New  Bern  could  not  have  been  supported, 
nor  could  the  church  have  been  built.  Bishop  England  baptized 
Gaston's  grandchildren  and  his  son-in-law.  Manly,  and  married  Susan 
to  Robert  Donaldson.  He  often  expressed  to  Gaston  his  love  for  him 
and  his  children,  and  the  two  remained  firm  friends  until  England's 
death  in  1842. 

Another  bishop  whose  love  for  Gaston  was  as  strong  as  that  of 
England's  was  the  first  Bishop  of  Vincennes,  Indiana,  Simon  Brute 
de  Remur.  Father  Brute  had  been  introduced  to  Gaston  by  Father 
Grassi  at  Georgetown  College  when  the  North  Carolinian  was  in 
Congress.  Between  1821  and  1836  Brute  wrote  at  least  one  hundred 
and  forty  letters  to  Gaston.  The  two  exchanged  views  on  literature, 
art,  and  culture.  Brute's  letters  were  replete  with  spiritual  matters, 
and  he  often  asked  Gaston's  help  in  preparation  of  some  dissertation. 

One  of  Father  Brute's  first  assignments  after  coming  to  the  United 
States  was  at  Mount  Saint  Mary's  College  near  Emmitsburg,  Mary- 
land, of  which  he  was  a  leading  figure.  While  at  Emmitsburg  Brute 
had  occasion  often  to  see  Gaston's  children  and  kept  the  father  informed 
concerning  them.  His  letters  were  always  filled  with  expressions  of 
affection  for  his  friend.  He  wished  to  see  Gaston  become  a  bishop  in 
North  Carolina,  and  often  spoke  to  him  of  his  desire.70  When  rumors 
reached  him  that  Gaston  might  be  nominated  for  the  vice-presidency  of 
the  United  States  he  was  disturbed,  saying,  "I  find  no  courage  to  wish 

68  Gaston  to  Joseph  Hopkinson,  June  12,  1822,  Hopkinson  Collection. 

69  England  to  Gaston,  Nov.  7,  1829,  ACHS  Records,  XIX,  140-143.  The 
letters  of  Gaston  to  England  were  turned  over  to  the  Diocese  of  Charleston  by 
the  family,  as  they  involved  many  ecclesiastical  questions.  They  were  accidently 
destroyed  in  a  fire. 

70  Bishop  Brute  to  Gaston.  Dec.  7,  1828,  Brute  MSS,  University  of  Notre  Dame 
Archives.  Hereafter  these  archives  referred  to  as:  AUND.  For  further  informa- 
tion on  Bishop  Brute,  cf.  Sister  M.  Salesia  Godecker's  Simon  Brute  de  Remur, 
First  Bishop  of  Vincennes,  (St.  Meinrad,  Indiana,  1931),  and  Theodore  Maynard, 
The  Reed  and  The  Rock,  (New  York,  1942). 


422 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


that  happiness  to  you,  but  to  this  country  I  wish  it."71  When  Gaston's 
nephew,  John  Louis  Taylor,  was  at  Emmitsburg,  Brute  asked  Gaston 
to  preside  at  the  commencement  exercises,  but  because  of  his  duties  on 
the  state  supreme  court  the  judge  was  unable  to  attend  the  affair.  He 
had  been  greatly  interested  in  his  nephew's  progress,  as  he  had  financed 
his  education  at  the  college.72  After  Brute  became  Bishop  of  Vin- 
cennes  he  told  Gaston  that  he  was  reduced  to  begging  openly;  that 
when  Gaston  wrote  to  him  he  should  pay  the  postage  and  ballast  his 
letter  with  a  note  of  $10,  for  he  was  as  poor  as  Job.73  Bishop  Brute 
was  often  very  critical  of  Bishop  England's  policies  as  far  as  the 
Miscellany  was  concerned,  and  felt  that  his  esposual  of  the  Irish  cause 
in  his  paper  was  most  unwise.  He  wrote  Gaston  several  times,  asking 
him  to  try  to  influence  the  Bishop  of  Charleston  concerning  the  paper. 
In  one  letter  to  Gaston  he  cried,  "It  made  me  bleed  along  pages  of  the 
Miscellany,  when  all  that  candor  ....  why  will  he  write  before  passion 
is  cooled  ....  why  no  friend,  no  counsel  with  whom  to  read  over. . .  ,"74 

Gaston  was  always  a  pious  Catholic  and  his  religion  influenced  his 
daily  life.  His  children  were  often  edified  to  see  their  father  walking 
up  and  down  the  grape  arbor  in  the  backyard  reading  his  prayers  from 
a  missal  or  some  other  prayer  book.  It  can  truthfuly  be  said  that  he 
was  the  greatest  Catholic  of  North  Carolina,  for  the  state  has  never 
produced  another  to  equal  him. 

In  1834  the  General  Assembly  of  North  Carolina  elected  Gaston  to 
the  state  supreme  court,  and  he  spent  the  last  ten  years  of  his  life  in 
that  position.  He  declined  to  accept  any  other  post,  although  import- 
ant public  places  were  several  times  offered  him.  The  following  words 
are  characteristic  of  his  attitude  in  this  respect : 

As  the  close  of  life  approaches — calmly  and  gently  as  I  thank  God  it 
does  come  on — I  feel  a  constantly  increasing  desire,  and  believe  that 

71  Brute  to  Gaston,  July  27,  1832,  Brute  MSS,  AUND. 

72  Idem. 

73  Brute  to  Gaston,  Jan.  10,  1835,  Brute  MSS,  AUND. 

74  Brute  to  Gaston,  Aug.  14,  ?  ,  Brute  MSS,  AUND.  The  letters  of  Brute 
to  Gaston  are  rich  in  information  for  the  student  of  Brute.  They  are  long, 
written  sometimes  in  French,  sometimes  in  English,  with  lengthy  passages  in 
Latin,  or  a  combination  of  the  three.  At  the  time  I  used  them  they  had  not  been 
used  hitherto  by  any  Brute  student.  I  have  been  unable  to  find  any  of  Gaston's 
letters  to  Brute. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


423 


there  is  an  increasing  fitness,  that  I  may  be  allowed  to  spend  the 
remainder  of  my  days  in  the  discharge  of  accustomed  duties  ....  re- 
mote from  public  glare,  and  exempt  from  the  ambition  of  display.75 
During  court  sessions  in  Raleigh  he  stayed  with  his  sister,  Jane 
Taylor,  who  had  been  a  widow  since  1829.  The  Taylor  home  was 
always  full  of  children,  and  on  winter  evenings,  if  there  were  no  com- 
pany, the  children  would  usually  gather  around  him  for  a  story  from 
Arabian  Nights  or  sometimes  a  song.  On  clear  and  starry  nights 
all  would  troop  outside  and  the  judge  would  point  out  the  different 
stars  and  constellations  to  them.  He  loved  the  society  of  the  young 
and  they  loved  him.  To  most  of  their  entertainments  he  received 
invitations,  which  he  always  accepted,  if  only  to  drop  in  for  a  few 
minutes,  and  he  never  missed  the  weddings  of  his  young  friends. 
When  the  session  of  the  court  was  over  he  returned  to  New  Bern, 
where  his  two  youngest  daughters  and  he  would  ride  about  the  plan- 
tation and  take  long  walks  together. 

In  April,  1837,  another  grief  was  thrust  upon  the  family,  as  Eliza, 
the  wife  of  Alexander,  mother  of  their  two  young  boys,  William  and 
Hugh,  passed  away  at  the  age  of  twenty-nine.  Two  years  later 
Alexander  remarried;  his  bride  this  time  was  Sarah  Murphy,  who 
completely  won  the  old  judge's  heart.76  In  September,  1842,  Eliza 
asked  his  consent  to  marry  George  Graham,  and  two  months  later 
Gaston  was  writing  from  Baltimore  to  Mrs.  Graham.  She  had  been 
married  by  Archbishop  Eccleston  on  November  14  in  Washington, 
D.  C.  Alexander's  debts  became  a  source  of  worry,  so  his  father 
worked  out  a  solution  to  this  problem  by  giving  his  son  in  advance 
his  share  of  the  inheritance  and  by  arranging  more  lenient  terms  with 
Alexander's  creditors.77  Feeling  that  the  education  of  his  grandson, 
William,  was  being  neglected,  Gaston  offered  to  finance  it,  by  sending 

75  Gaston  to  James  Ryder,  S.J.,  President  of  Georgetown  College,  Nov.  24, 
1841,  Georgetown  University  Archives. 

76  There  is  a  tradition  that  one  of  these  grandsons  of  Gaston  while  mortally 
wounded  on  a  battlefield  in  the  Civil  War,  was  seen  and  consoled  by  President 
Lincoln,  who  remarked  that  he  was  acquainted  with  the  reputation  of  his  grand- 
father. Lieutenant  William  Gaston  fell  in  battle  with  the  Spokane  Indians  in 
Washington  Territory  on  May  7,  1858,  while  Captain  Hugh  Gaston  died  fighting 
with  the  Confederates  at  the  battle  of  Antietam. 

77  Gaston  to  Michael  Hoke,  Feb.  23,  1843,  Chief  Justice  Hoke  MSS,  University 
of  North  Carolina  Library  Archives. 


424 


J.  HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


the  lad  to  Emmitsburg,  Raleigh,  or  the  New  Bern  Academy.  He  now 
had  but  one  daughter,  Kate,  remaining  with  him  as  the  rest  of  the 
children  were  married. 

In  the  summer  following  Eliza's  marriage  Gaston  was  involved  in  a 
serious  accident,  which  made  the  use  of  crutches  necessary  for  some 
time,  and  delayed  his  appearance  at  the  summer  term  of  the  court.  That 
winter,  in  December,  1843,  he  made  his  will.  He  left  to  Alexander's 
children,  William,  Hugh,  and  Susan  one-third  of  all  his  land  in  Tennes- 
see and  North  Carolina  and  one-third  of  that  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Trent  River ;  two-thirds  of  the  land  on  the  Trent  River  went  to  Susan 
Jane  Donaldson  and  to  his  granddaughter,  Hannah  Manly,  with  the 
exception  of  the  tract  inherited  from  his  father  on  Bryce's  Creek  be- 
tween the  Hotston  and  Bullen  branches,  the  tract  purchased  from 
Nathaniel  Smith,  two  tracts  in  Tennessee  purchased  from  A.  D. 
Murphy,  and  some  others  which  he  left  to  Katherine  Jane  Gaston  and 
Eliza  Graham.  To  his  sister  he  left  $100  a  year  for  the  rest  of  her 
life,  and  to  his  nephew,  John  Louis  Taylor,  he  left  $500.  Finally,  to 
the  Catholic  Church  in  New  Bern  he  left  $100  a  year  for  five  years.78 

A  few  days  before  Christmas  of  1843,  in  his  last  letter  to  his  beloved 
daughter,  Susan,  he  exclaimed  "I  fear  that  the  whole  family  will  never 
again  meet  in  this  world,  but  it  is  my  humble  supplication  to  Almighty 
God  that  we  will  be  found  together,  not  one  cast  away  or  left  behind, 
in  our  home  beyond  the  grave.  .  .  ."79  At  this  time  Gaston  had  a 
slight  stoop  and  was  a  little  stout,  although  this  was  not  noticeable  as 
he  stood  a  little  over  six  feet  in  height.  He  had  a  florid  complexion, 
and  his  dark  hair,  above  the  calm,  blue  eyes,  was  abundantly  streaked 
with  grey.  He  had  reached  a  stage  where  shabby  clothes  meant 
nothing ;  his  sister  often  gave  them  away  in  order  to  force  him  to  buy 
new  apparel.80 

On  the  morning  of  January  23,  1844,  Gaston,  after  a  cold  shower 
which  he  took  every  morning,  came  in  early  to  the  Taylor  home  for 
breakfast.  It  was  a  fine  sunny  day,  and  he  was  in  the  best  of  spirits, 
entertaining  the  rest  during  the  meal  with  a  recitation  from  memory 

78  Craven  County  Will  Book,  D,  p.  93. 

79  Gaston  to  Susan  Donaldson,  Dec.  22,  1843,  Gaston  MSS. 

80  Reminiscence  of  Miss  L.  N.  Taylor,  who  was  just  past  twenty  at  Gaston's 
death.    Gaston  MSS. 


THE  DOMESTIC  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM  GASTON 


425 


of  Johnson's  poem,  The  Vanity  of  Human  Wishes.  After  breakfast 
he  spent  another  half-hour  with  them  and  then  left  for  his  office.  That 
afternoon  a  divorce  case  was  being  heard  in  the  supreme  court.  Dur- 
ing the  arguments  he  took  notes,  but  at  two  o'clock  he  became  faint 
and  sick  at  the  stomach.  He  left  the  bench  and  started  for  home,  but 
had  to  step  into  the  governor's  office,  where  he  rested  until  a  carriage 
was  obtained.  He  was  then  taken  to  his  office;  his  sister  and  Dr. 
Haywood  were  called,  but  it  was  three  hours  before  he  could  be 
brought  back  from  the  unconscious  state  into  which  he  had  sunk.  By 
this  time  his  office  was  overflowing  with  friends,  among  whom  were 
Chief  Justice  Ruffin,  Governor  Morehead,  Attorney-General  Whita- 
ker,  and  Charles  Manly.  After  recovering  consciousness  he  was  never 
more  brilliant  in  conversation  as  Greek,  Latin,  and  poetry  flowed  from 
his  lips,  amid  much  joking  and  laughter.  When  Ruffin  proposed 
applying  a  hot  mustard-plaster  he  murmured  in  protest,  "  'Tis  astonish- 
ing, Ruffin,  with  how  much  fortitude  you  bear  my  troubles." 

Finally,  in  a  moment  of  silence,  he  began  to  tell  of  a  party  which  he 
had  attended  at  Washington  some  years  before.  It  seemed  that  there 
a  certain  Tobias  Walker  had  avowed  himself  a  free-thinker  in  religion. 
''From  that  day  I  always  looked  on  that  man  with  distrust,"  said 
Gaston,  "I  do  not  say  that  a  free-thinker  may  not  be  an  honorable 
man ;  that  he  may  not  from  high  motive  scorn  to  do  a  mean  act ;  but 
I  dare  not  trust  him."  With  solemn  earnestness  the  judge  sat  up,  and 
looking  at  those  about  him,  emphatically  declared  "A  belief  in  an  over- 
ruling Divinity,  who  shapes  our  ends,  whose  eye  is  upon  us,  and  who 
will  reward  us  according  to  our  deeds,  is  necessary.  We  must  believe 
there  is  a  God — All  Wise  and  Almighty — "  With  the  last  word  he 
sank  back  with  a  groan,  and  never  uttered  another  word,  for  within 
five  minutes  death  had  claimed  him.  The  merry  voices  in  the  office 
were  now  stilled,  as  eyes  were  dimmed  with  tears  and  flushed,  laughing 
countenances  became  white  and  sorrowful.  They  found  it  hard  to 
realize  that  this  magnetic  and  beloved  personality  was  no  more.  The 
only  relative  at  hand  was  his  sister,  for  the  rest  of  the  family  were 
scattered.  At  eight  o'clock  that  night  his  death  was  announced  to  the 
astonished  people  of  Raleigh.  He  was  buried  in  Raleigh,  but  later 
his  remains  were  taken  to  New  Bern  for  burial  in  old  Cedar  Grove 
Cemetery  by  the  graves  of  his  parents  and  daughter.  The  day  his  body 


426 


J.   HERMAN  SCHAUINGER 


arrived  all  business  was  suspended  in  the  town,  bells  tolled,  and  flags 
were  at  half-mast.  Everyone  wore  crepe  for  thirty  days,  and  the 
Negroes  of  the  town,  in  a  meeting  of  their  own,  resolved  upon  the  same 
procedure,  besides  voting  to  place  a  picture  of  the  judge  in  every  one 
of  their  homes. 

Attorney-General  Whitaker  said  that  the  evening  before  his  death 
Gaston  had  mentioned  that  death  had  no  terrors  to  him,  and  that  the 
years  he  had  numbered  were  but  so  many  steps  in  the  completion  of 
the  journey  assigned  him  by  his  Master.  The  resolution  adopted  by 
the  bar  of  the  state  mentioned  his  "undeviating  pursuit  of  the  right 
which  only  an  ardent  and  animating  religious  faith  can  bestow  and 
adequately  sustain."  Judge  John  R.  Donnell,  one  of  his  former  law 
students,  exclaimed,  "His  fame  as  a  distinguished  statesman  and  pro- 
found jurist  belongs  to  his  country  ....  and  the  pen  of  the  historian 
will  hand  it  down  to  the  latest  posterity.  .  .  .  We  believe  that  he  never 
did  an  intentional  wrong.  .  .  ."81  All  state  newspapers  praised  his  pure 
and  spotless  integrity,  and  almost  every  editor  who  noticed  the  event 
in  other  states  commented  about  the  manner  of  his  death.  This  greatly 
impressed  the  country  as  it  had  those  who  were  gathered  around  him 
at  the  end.   It  was  characteristic  of  the  man. 

J.  Herman  Schauinger 

Gannon  College 

81  Circular,  New  Bern,  Jan.  29,  1844.